Look down this page at Henry Hudson. I have Therese and to me, it's just okay. I really like my Rotes Meer. I also like my Rugosa Rubra but have noticed this year the blooms blow very fast. I did a post on white rugosas if you want recommendations on white ones, I saved the info.

Carla

I'd gotten some rugosa roses from Corn Hill last year. Also a couple from Sherando.

They all seem to be doing pretty well; the ones from Corn Hill had an earlier start and were ahead but not by much.

The best so far seem to be Snow Pavement and Dart's Dash. Had a few flowere on Blanc Double de Coubert last year, anticipate more.

Slow last year were Moje Hammerberg & Roseraie de l'Hay, though both look good now, having buds getting ready to bloom.

F.J. Grootendorst is a continuous bloomer. Tall with fringed flowers that are red, not brilliant but nice. It has other color sports, pink and white along with a deeper red. Fru Dagmar Hastrup is also a good one not as tall as F.J. Another continuous bloomer is Bell Poitevine with very beautiful flowers. Both it an Fru are very fragrant as are most rugosas (except for F.J. that is scentless)

Dart's Dash is my favorite. It resembles a shorter-growing version of Hansa, which also looks rather like Rosaraie de l'Hay. All three rugosas are magenta, have an intense fragrance of cloves and rebloom. Dart's Dash has beautiful, huge hips, about the size of cherry tomatoes.

Rosefolly

First, see if you can find a copy of Suzy Verrier's Rosa Rugosa book. Spectacular photos, good advice.
Second, look up Polareis - a hybrid, but with very rugose foliage and a goshdarn bloom machine. Huge spring flush, one midsummer, another in fall, and always a few in between. No disease, winter hardy - two years ago there was a new set of buds trying out a mild December!
If I had to pick one rose - Polareis. Suzy Verrier sells it at her North Creek Farm nursery on the Maine coast, near Bath. It might be too late to ship to you, though...

This months issue of Fine Gardening has an article by Suzy Verrier that is very interesting and informative about her favorite Rugosa's. Well worth picking up the magazine and reading this article if you are interested in Rugosa's. I enjoyed it and I don't have any Rugosa's in my garden!

Carol

I suggest Rosa rugosa alba. Graham Stuart Thomas wrote of it that no rose is more purely white.

I agree. It's beautiful in its single, clear white simplicity against the shiny dark green foliage!

Look at Schneezeberg, they are smaller but white and lovely.
Vintage Gardens has a good offering.
I am afraid Rugosa Alba would blow it's blooms too fast. They are pretty but as I said, they are not for long time enjoyment in my opinion. Could be the heat here.

Carla

I've grown a lot of rugosas in zone 6, back when I had acres!! The best: r. rugosa alba and rubra--vigorous, bushy, lots of bloom & HIPS! Roserie de l'Hay makes a beautiful rounded shrub, very fragrant but sets few hips-- however you'll get the nice autumn foliage color on her. Fru Dagmar Hartopp is splended, lower-growing than many & so tough she's been used along freeways! Very lovely blooms; she's showier than her photos. For a small garden, J&P has a new hybrid out with nice BIG white single blooms called Wild Spice-- it's like a downsized r. rugosa alba but if anything even MORE fragrant. Not so good: Hansa-- can be awfully leggy/awkward-- Sarah van Fleet--as plants mature, gets bare legs. Sir Thomas Lipton--good grower but hard to place-- bare at bottom and soars up to about 11 feet tall. Hard to see the blooms!

Thank you for the suggestions. I appreciate the help.

I do have Suzy Verrier's Rosa Rugosa book. I'll have to see if I can find a copy of the magazine article.

Rotes Meer aka Purple Pavement seems unkillable here. It produces many blooms with powerful fragrance on a compact 5'x5' bush. RM also produces many viable suckers for me, but they generally appear within two feet of the plant.

{{gwi:225249}}

I really like my Rotes Meer too. I skimmed through the Fine Gardening and she mentions some rugosas I never heard of.

Carla

I'm another fan of Dart's Dash. Not crazy about the name, but it's a great performer. I like the name Wildberry Breeze even less, but it's another excellent rugosa. Single, beautifully perfumed flowers.

Here's a picture of my Wildberry Breeze:

{{gwi:270521}}

I second Rotesmeer and would also suggest Schneekoppe. It is white with a hint of lavender, one of the Pavement series. Said to only reach 3' x 3' I'd have to say mine reached 4 feet in only a couple of years. The Pavement series in general are dense, healthy roses that are good for low hedging. Most have semi-double blooms that look good all year. I once tried to catalog all known Pavement roses, here are the ones I've located:

Pierette Pavement, aka Yankee Lady - light pink - z3b
Purple Pavement, aka Rotesmeer, Exception - purple crimson - z3b
Snow Pavement, aka Schneekoppe - white with a hint of lavender - z3b
Foxi Pavement, aka Buffalo Gal - deep pink - z3b
Pink Pavement, aka Showy Pavement and Rokoko - orange-pink - z3b
Pristine Pavement, aka Schneeberg - white - z6b
Scarlet Pavement, aka Rote Apart - med. red - z6b
Snowflake Pavement, aka Schneeflocke - white w/pink edges - z4b
White Pavement, aka Snow Owl - white - z3b
Dwarf Pavement, aka Zwerg, Rosa Zwerg, Admiration - med. pink - z3b

Scarlet and Pristine Pavements may not be hardy for you as they are rated to z6b.

Another rugosa hybrid whose blooms alway look fresh to me is Jens Munk. It is one of the Canadian Explorer series.

Thanks again everyone for the suggestions. I'll have to see if the library has the Sunset article. That seems like it could be very helpful.

I live in the south-eastern part of Washington State. It really is that dry. I've had decent luck with rugosas--maybe not as much as in other climates--but they still make a nice plant. I see a number of rugosa hedges around, and the occasional older plant of something similar to Hansa, so IÂm not the only one growing rugosas.

Roseraie de l'Hay is one of my favorites. It already has buds with color underneath the sepals. Lovely, but the blooms do go a bit raggamuffin. However I find it's rather self cleaning so that's not so much a problem when looking too cruddy. I'm going to count the flushes I get this year, last year I think I had about three.

Max

Hansa's legginess can be an advantage as a background rose, especially since it will bloom with only part sun and is extremely fragrant. It is also the toughest rose I have ever grown.